Tony was about to unveil his creation to everyone, but before he could do anything, he saw Steve frowning as he took a big step forward and grabbed his arm.
"Hold on, Tony!"
Steve Rogers had a bad feeling. He sensed that something was off with Tony right now—you could even say Tony had backed himself into a dead end.
If it were just some ordinary person, it wouldn't matter much, but Tony had to be so damn brilliant. If something really went wrong, the fallout would be enormous.
Right now, Tony looked exactly like a mad scientist.
"Tony, I don't think this is a good idea."
Steve decided he had to talk him out of it.
"Using artificial intelligence to monitor the world, feeding the underlying code of Project Insight into an AI—this will lead to absolutely horrifying consequences. How can you guarantee the machine won't malfunction?"
"Malfunction?"
Tony found this amusing. He looked at Steve and shot back with displeasure, "You think there's something wrong with my invention?"
The thing he hated most was anyone questioning his intelligence, and clearly, Steve was stepping right on Tony's sorest spot.
Tony didn't hold back. "I think machines are more reliable than people!"
"Because they can run according to their programming forever, without ever changing—but people do." He looked at Steve.
"Just like S.H.I.E.L.D. back in the day. None of us can guarantee that H.A.M.M.E.R. won't fall apart years down the line. People always follow their own interests."
He said this without a trace of diplomacy.
You could say Tony's words were a direct slap to Norman's face.
But Norman didn't argue. As a businessman, he understood the ugly side of human nature better than anyone.
Just like his former friend, who tried to have him killed just to get control of Oscorp, right?
From that angle, trusting a machine really did seem more reliable.
But the problem was that Tony's approach was wrong.
No one wanted to live under surveillance.
"Using algorithms to control people you deem a threat—Tony, how is that any different from HYDRA?"
Steve asked, his voice heavy with sorrow.
After everything that had happened with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s infiltration, Steve had become extremely sensitive to matters like this.
And he wasn't the only one. The others clearly didn't agree with Tony's approach either. One after another, skeptical looks landed on Tony, making him feel utterly isolated.
Tony was both deeply hurt and furious. He had thought at least someone would agree with him, because this was the only way to truly, flawlessly protect this planet.
But reality said otherwise.
Still, he would never back down!
"Let me tell you what's different!"
He shook off Steve's arm and pointed forcefully at the wall covered in suits of armor behind him. "HYDRA wanted to eliminate anyone they saw as a threat. I want to eliminate anyone who threatens the Earth!"
The same tool, used differently, could produce completely opposite results.
Just like a gun—you could use it to murder someone, or you could use it to protect someone.
Tony believed his thinking and his approach were correct. Since you couldn't protect the Earth properly, then let him do it!
What was wrong with that?
But most people didn't approve.
Yet aside from Steve and Norman, no one else spoke up.
Bant glanced around. Most of them had their heads down, troubled expressions on their faces. Natasha was half-biting her lip, her face turned to the side, two fingers rubbing her furrowed brow.
"Tony, if we follow your plan, maybe crime would drop dramatically—but what about the people's freedom?"
Steve asked.
"What you're doing would only create a tyranny propped up by oppression!"
"And what's wrong with that?"
Tony shot back.
"I saved them. I gave them a safe environment. I can stop all crime before it even happens. They should be thanking me!"
"We should protect the people, but not like this!"
Clearly, neither of them could convince the other.
But Tony ended the debate.
"When you were going after HYDRA, you used an algorithm too, didn't you? So what's there to say?"
After all the arguing, they turned their eyes toward Bant... and Norman Osborn standing next to him.
The most critical thing now was whether Norman would support it.
Norman Osborn was the director of H.A.M.M.E.R. If Tony wanted to launch the Ultron Project, something that concerned the safety of the entire world, there was no way around him.
In fact, even Norman didn't have the final say. When it all came down to it, it would probably need approval from the World Security Council anyway.
Of course, knowing Tony, if the Security Council said no, he'd just do it himself.
To hell with the Security Council. If he backed down now, he might as well go open a barbershop.
Norman felt a headache coming on.
It was hard to make a clear call on this, but from a scientist's perspective, he completely understood why Tony trusted his own creation so much.
Compared to people, an unchanging program truly was more trustworthy.
Unable to decide, he looked over at Bant.
"Bant, what do you think?"
When in doubt, ask Bant. This was an objective law of the universe that Norman had summarized over this period of time—an eternal truth, an immutable law of physics.
In his view, Bant might have some ideas and plans of his own, but at the end of the day, his focus was always on protecting the Earth.
And that was enough.
Plus, his vision really was broader.
The moment Norman spoke, all eyes shifted to Bant.
To them, Bant was something of a pillar. If even he agreed with Tony, then the others might actually go along with it.
Bant, naturally, wanted to cheer with both hands and both feet in support.
After all, without Ultron, where would he get the chance to enjoy the show of Tony's misery?
How else would he broadcast that arrogant little punk's humiliating defeat to the entire world?
But this was something he absolutely could not nod along to.
Ultron going wrong was an inevitability. If he backed Tony now, and things blew up later, wouldn't he share the blame?
Let him carry the black pot together with Tony?
Don't even think about it!
So he spoke in deliberately ambiguous terms.
"In the Plumbers' archives, there are indeed records of the Kree—one of the three most powerful civilizations in the universe—adopting a similar approach."
The moment Tony heard that, his eyes lit up.
Now that's more like it!
That's what a smart person says!
Tony was delighted. Since there was a civilization in the universe that had done this, and it wasn't hard to infer from Bant's words that this civilization was extremely powerful...
That meant his approach was on the right track.
Ultron was the future of humanity!
"Tell me more."
His interest piqued, he plopped down on the armrest of the sofa, picked up his empty glass, and refilled it.
"The Kree Empire."
Bant began to explain slowly.
Steve and the others who had participated in the Infinity War immediately recalled something. "Ronan the Accuser's people?"
Bant nodded.
"Although the Kree Empire has a nominal king and ruler, in reality, the true force determining the direction of their civilization is the artificial intelligence they created—the Supreme Intelligence."
"It condenses the highest wisdom of the Kree people, encompassing all science, philosophy, military strategy, ideology, and more. For a long time, it led the Kree Empire."
"You see!"
Tony grew even more smug. He pointed a single finger at Steve's nose, nostrils flaring.
"One of the most advanced civilizations in the universe used the exact same approach as me. They even went further, handing over everything on their planet to an artificial intelligence!"
"I told you from the start—Ultron is the future! Now even Bant supports me—"
"Stop!"
Bant pressed one hand flat against the palm of the other, cutting off Stark's impassioned speech.
"I didn't say I support you. I merely stated that a similar civilizational development model does exist in the universe. The real question is whether Ultron can serve the same function as the Supreme Intelligence—whether it can guide a civilization forward for tens of thousands of years."
"Who knows whether Ultron will bring a new age, or a machine crisis?"
Bant was completely blunt.
To be honest, even the Supreme Intelligence had its problems.
The Kree rose because of the Supreme Intelligence, and they fell because of it too.
After tens of thousands of years of civilizational development, the Supreme Intelligence no longer possessed transcendent foresight or wisdom.
But putting all that aside, no matter how much you talked, it still came down to what Tony's Ultron was actually capable of.
Bant knew perfectly well that Ultron was garbage, but he wasn't about to kindly warn Tony.
Hearing this, Tony immediately couldn't sit still. "Are you doubting me?"
If being questioned by Steve had only made him a little angry, being doubted by Bant was something Tony absolutely could not tolerate.
Steve? A relic whose worldview was stuck seventy years in the past—what the hell did he know about science?
Norman Osborn was pretty much the same. In Tony's eyes, he was just a second-rate researcher not even worth mentioning. And the rest of them were even less relevant.
When people like that doubted him, Tony could comfort himself that their stupid brains simply didn't understand science or AI technology.
But being doubted by Bant infuriated him.
Because in his view, Bant's intelligence was on the same level as his own. And Bant had created Eunice, an AI no weaker than JARVIS.
In this field, the only person Tony acknowledged was Bant.
Now that Bant doubted him, he was even more determined to prove himself!
You doubt me, which means you think you couldn't do it. Now I've done it, so I win!
With that mindset, Tony walked straight toward the wall behind him. The wall covered in suits of armor slid open, revealing a silver-white laboratory hidden behind it.
"Since you doubt me, then let me show you just what my Ultron is capable of!"
"JARVIS!"
"Yes, sir." JARVIS's voice remained as even-toned as ever.
"What—Tony, wait..." Hearing Tony's words, Steve clearly realized what he was about to do and immediately tried to stop him.
But Tony had long since decided he was done arguing.
You thought I was here to discuss this with you?
Wrong!
This was a notification!
"Initiate Ultron. Now!"
"Yes, sir."
Naturally, JARVIS did exactly as Tony commanded.
The Ultron program was activated immediately. Before everyone's eyes, a mass of light resembling a mind took shape—an ebb and flow of artificial intelligence thought, flickering erratically like an audio waveform.
In an instant, everyone fell silent, waiting for the result.
Then, a third voice slowly emerged.
"Tony Stark... my creator."
It was Ultron.
Tony smirked smugly, his little mustache practically dancing with pride.
"Go on. Introduce yourself to them." Tony stepped aside to give it the stage.
"Everyone, I am Ultron." The visualized mind-form emitted electronic signals, simultaneously projecting its voice through the speakers.
"The full designation is the Ultron Global Defense System. I am a program created by Mr. Tony Stark to safeguard peace and stability across the entire planet."
It communicated with Bant and the others as if it were a real person.
Perhaps because it was still confined to a local network, Ultron had yet to become aware of human filth, so its tone was closer to JARVIS's.
It really was learning from JARVIS's programming.
"What do you intend to do?"
Bant immediately asked.
Ultron replied, "Based on the foundational programming left to me by my creator, Mr. Stark, I will resolutely counter all factors that threaten peace, eliminate them, and create a harmonious world."
Tony was extremely satisfied.
But for Bant and the others to truly see what Ultron could do, they needed to fully open the global network and let it show its full strength.
Tony had waited until today precisely for this moment!
"Watch closely!"
"JARVIS, connect Ultron to the global network!"
"Yes, sir."
JARVIS immediately complied. The next moment, everyone saw the glowing virtual mind suddenly begin to fluctuate violently.
Like a pot of water flash-boiling and exploding outward!
A torrent of global information surged into Ultron's mind all at once. In an instant, this blank-slate machine was stained with colors of every kind.
It's starting.
Bant sat up straight, ready to enjoy the show.
Five minutes later, that mass of thought slowly settled and calmed, once again resembling something like a gentle spring.
"Ultron?"
Tony was a little uneasy too. He called out tentatively.
Unexpectedly, Ultron showed no abnormal reaction. It answered calmly.
"I am here, Mr. Stark."
Just like JARVIS.
This genuinely surprised Bant.
That's not right.
Ultron isn't planning to destroy the world?
He couldn't figure it out. Had the Ultron of this universe actually turned over a new leaf? After witnessing so much of humanity's dark side on the network, it wasn't planning to wipe out humans?
What kind of saint was this?
Something's off. Very off.
Bant's eyes narrowed.
He decided to keep watching.
Meanwhile, Tony secretly pumped his fist in excitement, then asked:
"Well?"
In an instant, countless holographic screens opened before everyone's eyes. Through global network connections and surveillance cameras, Ultron was processing an endless stream of information. This increasingly digitized world was as transparent as glass in its eyes.
"Sir, there are currently 1,645 crimes in progress in New York City. An estimated 538 more are about to occur... In total, tens of thousands of individuals show potential for criminal behavior..."
Ultron answered calmly.
But inside, it was anything but calm.
"Shall I deploy the Iron Legion?"
/-\
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